Practically every country has its own particular cheeses. Cheese may be classified under two headings those in which the curdling is due primarily to the action of rennit and are termed natural and those in which the curdling is due primarily to acid producing bacteria and are termed processed.
The availability of natural and processed cheese and cheese foods sliced and in unit weight packages has increased the sales of cheeses in this and in other countries.
The most popular cheese sold in the United States of America is domestic cheddar termed American.
American cheese is available packaged in slices as natural and as pasteurized processed and as pasteurized cheese food types.
Natural cheese slices are packaged stacked one slice atop the other without any separating barrier between them. Pasteurized processed cheeses and pasteurized processed cheese food slices are packaged one slice atop another slice each slice in an envelope. Pasteurized processed cheese slices and pasteurized processed cheese food slices will adhere if stacked one slice atop the other slice without any barrier between them and will lose water and will not remain fresh during its shelf life period.
Chart No. 1 lists the water content of natural cheese at 37.0 percent, pasteurized processed cheese at 40.0 percent and pasteurized processed cheese food at 43.2 percent.
Variations in temperatures that normally occur during refrigeration causes natural cheese slices packaged stacked one atop the other without any barrier between each slice to adhere.
______________________________________ CHART NO. 1 ______________________________________ Cheeses, natural and processed; cheese foods Percent Water Protein Fat Ash Carbohydrate ______________________________________ Natural cheeses Item 646 Cheddar domestic type commonly called 37.0 25.0 32.2 3.7 2.1 American Pasteurized process cheese Item 653 American 40.0 23.2 30.0 4.9 1.9 Item 654 Pimento (American) 40.0 23.0 30.2 5.0 1.8 Pasteurized process cheese food American Item 656 American 43.2 19.8 24.0 5.9 7.1 ______________________________________ Items listed in Composition of Foods U.S.D.A. Handbook No. 8, Page 22.
Natural cheese slices have low water content and when eaten directly from refrigeration are dry to the taste and are not flavorful. When they are heated the slices are tough to the taste because they have lost water and lack proper flavor.
When the water content of natural cheese is raised in the process to 40 and to 43.2 percent water contents its slices at both water contents are as flavorful as pasteurized processed cheese slices and pasteurized processed cheese food slices. The slices will adhere if packaged stacked one atop the other slice without any barrier between them. The slices will become dry from loss of water also.
Both the composition of the fatty acids described in chart No. 2 in the milk fat and in the cream fat physical characteristics are influenced by the food intake of the cow as well as by the season of the year and the animal strain. There is a pronounced seasonal change in fatty acid composition of the milk fat. The softening point and the melting point of the milk fat vary with its percentage of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids. The milk fat is more firm when the percentage of saturated fatty acids predominate and are less firm when the saturated fatty acids are low and the unsaturated fatty acids predominate. Variations from season to season in composition of the fatty acids and the effect of the variations on the milk fat physical characteristics make it difficult to prepare stacked sliced cheese made with the fat as a component part that will not adhere and that will be flavorful. Information in chart No. 2 relating to variations in butter fat fatty acids point out the problem.
__________________________________________________________________________ Characteristics and fatty acid composition of butter fat Hil- Hil- Jack ditch ditch and co- and Range and workers Jasper- of Jasper- (3) son (4) values son (4) GLC __________________________________________________________________________ Analysis __________________________________________________________________________ Characteristics Iodine number 32.9 37.05 42.9 Saponification equiv. 236.3 247.7 251.8 Reichert- Meisel 32.5 26.1 27.4 Polenske value 1.85 1.78 Kirschner value 21.8 21.8 Composition of fatty acids,Wt.% butyric 3.5 3.6 2.8-4.0 3.7 3 caproic 0.4 2.0 1.4-3.0 1.7 1 caprylic 1.7 0.5 0.5-1.7 1.0 1 lauric 2.6 2.3 1.7-3.2 1.9 3 myristic 14.6 11.1 5.4-14.6 8.1 4 palmitic 30.2 29.0 26-41 25.9 12 stearic 10.5 9.2 6.1-11.2 11.2 29 above C18 1.6 2.4 1.2-2-4 1.2 11 Total saturated 70.6 62.6 57.5 66 decenoic 0.3 0.1 0.1-0.3 0.1 dodecenoic 0.2 0.1 0.1-0.3 0.2 tetradecenoic 1.5 0.9 0.6-1.6 0.6 hexadecenoic 5.7 4.6 2.8-5.7 3.4 4 octadecenoic 2.1 3.6 0.9-3.7 3.7 2 (oleic ect) 18.7 26.7 18.7-33.4 32.8 27 unsaturated 0.9 1.4 0.7-30 8-30 1 c20 and c22 Total Unsaturated 29.4 37.4 42.5 34 __________________________________________________________________________ References: J. L. Henderson & E. L. Jack, Oil and soap 21,90-92 1944(3) T. P. Hilditch & H. Jasperson J. Soc. Chem Ind. 60-305-310 1941 (4) GLC see S. Dal Nogare in Organic analysis vol 4 interscience New York 196 Crediting Bailey's Industrial Oil And Fat Products 3rd ed. interscience publishing co. page 168.
An object of the invention is to provide a method to replace the envelope in which each cheese slice is enclosed and to prevent them from adhering.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a method to prevent cheese slices from adhering during refrigeration when they are stacked one atop the other without any non food barrier between them.
Another object of the present invention is to provide cheese slices that when refrigerated do not adhere together and lose at most a minimum amount of water.
Another object of the present invention is to provide cheese slices that when refrigerated do not adhere together by employing a method that is economical to utilized and efficient to carry out.
This and other objects of this invention will become apparent from a reading of the following specifications and claims.